Licensed Thieves & Shady Transactions: Sarcastic Posters Exposing the Systemic Rot in the DHFL “Scam”

Licensed Thieves & Shady Transactions: Sarcastic Posters Exposing the Systemic Rot in the DHFL “Scam”

Posted on 12th May, 2025 (GMT 21: 55 hrs)

ABSTRACT

This im/passioned collage of posters from many of the Indian citizens highlights the systemic corruption and financial abuse exemplified by the Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) scam, portraying it as a symptom of a broader BJP-headed autocratic regime’s collusion with crony capitalists like Ajay Piramal and others like Ambani and Adani. India’s low score of 38 on the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index underscores the pervasive corruption that enables such financial heists. The misuse of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) of 2016, coupled with the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) appointment of a complicit Committee of Creditors (CoC), facilitated the orchestrated plundering of DHFL depositors’ savings. Against this backdrop, sarcastic book covers and posters serve as powerful tools of resistance, exposing the roles of the RBI Governor and CoC members in alleged bribery, audit fraud, and data manipulation. These creative expressions are not only a critique of financial misconduct but also a broader condemnation of human rights violations, where systemic greed strips citizens of all senses of dignity and security. The narrative calls for justice through satire, urging accountability in a nation suffocated by regulatory apathy and political patronage.

Dedicated to Nirmala Sitharaman, Shaktikanta Das, R. Subramaniakumar, Charu S Desai, Bela Trivedi and Mukul Rohatgi

This post may not “write” much in the conventional sense…
Yet it writes. It weaves resistance—through posters and potential book covers—born from the active recognition of the suffering inflicted upon DHFL victims by the current political-corporate regime.

It is a creative responsiveness to that suffering.

This is an attempt to carve out a space—however fragile—where one can truly begin to resonate with the victims of a “scam” allegedly orchestrated by agencies of power.

For what?
To preserve their images, perhaps.
Images—representations—through which power has always operated: appearing and disappearing, existing and not existing, depending on convenience.

So we block their pathways—asserting a firmer No Pasarán—through these counter-representations.

To the victims of DHFL, and to all those suffering under the BJP’s auto-theocratic regime:
Feel free to use these posters and book covers. They are shared under Creative Commons.
This is not just a fight for justice—it is a fight for survival.

To the final hopes we still cherish and imbibe…

Posters of Resistance

“RBI’s Guide to Financial Amnesia”
With a caricature of the then RBI Governor Dr. S. K. Das clutching a book labeled “How to Ignore a Scam,” this cover mocks the central bank’s apparent selective blindness. The fine print sarcastically praises the RBI for its “unwavering commitment to opacity and inaction,” pointing to the questionable appointment of the CoC and the lack of transparency in the DHFL resolution process.

“The CoC Chronicles: A Tale of Bribery and Betrayal”
Featuring the RBI-appointed CoC for DHFL-representatives as protagonists in a fictional crime novel, this cover drips with irony. It accuses the CoC of turning a blind eye to manipulated financial data and audit discrepancies, with a tagline that reads: “When Creditors Become Conspirators.” It highlights the cozy relationships between regulators and corporate players, facilitated by alleged bribes and backroom deals.

“Data Denial for Dummies”
This cover lampoons the deliberate obfuscation of financial records in the DHFL case. Illustrated with a shredder labeled “RBI Approved,” it sarcastically offers “step-by-step instructions on how to bury evidence and dodge accountability.” It calls out the systemic refusal to provide transparent data to depositors and the public, a hallmark of the scam’s cover-up.

“The IBC Illusion: Bankruptcy as a Billionaire’s Playground”
A satirical take on the IBC’s flaws, this cover portrays the law as a rigged game where only the elite win. With a Monopoly-style board featuring Piramal as the top-hatted tycoon, it critiques how the IBC was weaponized to strip DHFL of its assets while leaving small investors penniless. The tagline? “Roll the dice, rig the game, ruin lives.”

“Auditing Alchemy: Turning Fraud into Profit”
This cover takes aim at the complicity of auditors in the DHFL scam, depicting them as alchemists cooking up fraudulent balance sheets in a cauldron labeled “Creative Accounting.” It sarcastically applauds their ability to transform red flags into green profits, with a nod to the CoC’s failure to scrutinize these discrepancies.

Potential Agitational Propaganda Book-Covers

The Broader Context: Systemic Corruption and Human Rights Violations in the Context of a Financial “Scam”

These sarcastic book covers are more than a creative outlet; they are a cry for justice in a nation where corruption is not an anomaly but a way of life. The DHFL scam is a microcosm of a larger malaise—where financial institutions, regulators, and political entities collude to exploit the vulnerable. The looting of depositors’ savings is not just a financial crime; it is a violation of human rights, stripping citizens of their dignity and security. The autocratic regime’s silence on such scams speaks volumes about its priorities, where the enrichment of a select few trumps the welfare of the masses.

The RBI and CoC’s actions—or lack thereof—reveal a system designed to protect the powerful. The appointment of a CoC by the RBI, rather than an independent body, raises questions about impartiality. The opacity surrounding the DHFL resolution process, coupled with allegations of data manipulation and audit fraud, points to a deliberate effort to obscure the truth. Meanwhile, depositors, many of whom are ordinary citizens who trusted DHFL with their life savings, are left destitute, their pleas for justice drowned out by the cacophony of corruption.

A Call to Action Through Satire

Our sarcastic book covers as well as the preceding posters essentially partake in a form of resistance, a way to reclaim our narrative in a system that seeks to silence us. They are an alleged middle finger (no offence intended, logico-legally speaking) to the RBI Governor, R. Subramaniakumar, Charu Sandip Desai, and the crony capitalists who profit from our misery. They are a reminder that the truths of the DHFL scam, though buried under layers of deceit, will not remain hidden forever.

We, the victims, will continue to observe the unobserved, to speak the unspeakable, and to fight for justice in a nation that has forgotten the meaning of the word.

Happy Ending?

Controversy erupts in India as wads of cash found at High Court judge’s home VIEW HERE ⤡ (As reported on 24 March 2025 © Independent)